Oh yeah, Dave!
    Other than dealing with the "guard", sounds like you had a great trip. I
deal with snow as a matter of coarse but I always find it fun when in an
area that isn't accustomed to it then watching the chaos. Sometimes you have
to drive but sounds like this time you just had to fly.
 Thanks for the flight report!

Todd
  -----Original Message-----
  From: Rotary motors in aircraft [mailto:flyrotary@lancaironline.net]On
Behalf Of David Leonard
  Sent: Thursday, December 18, 2008 9:55 PM
  To: Rotary motors in aircraft
  Subject: [FlyRotary] Careful how fast you fly!


  I had a very interesting trip to Las Vegas this week!

  I went there on Monday to meet a bunch of Navy buddies from my old
squadron but the weather was not so hot for flying.  I spent most of the day
waiting for the storm to pass but when it was still here at 3 pm I decided
to just drive there instead.  Alas, after 30min of stop and go traffic and
knowing that I was still facing the LA rush hour and a snowy mountain pass,
I was very disgruntled.

  Just as I was driving past my airplane hangared in Oceanside I noted that
I could see sun hitting the ocean several miles out, though it was still
raining and 1500 OVC at my location.  I couldnt take the drive anymore so I
loaded the plane and decided to take a look from the air.  I flew several
miles west over the ocean in light rain and low ceilings until the sky
finally opened up enough for me to climb above the LA class B, head north to
clearer skys, then catch the very frisky tail wind NE to Vegas.  I didnt
bother talking to anyone because 1- if you don't know how far
up/down/left/right you are going to need to go to avoid the next cloud it is
a real pain to try to communicate with those guys who really prefer to know
exactly what you plan next, 2- I was the only guy at the altitudes I was
flying at (13500) - the FBO said I was their only arrival all day.   3-
those guys are always interrupting the music - and it was way too beautiful
of a flight to have the music constantly interrupted.... Sunset, fresh snow
on the mountains, crystal clear and clean air, scattered loafing cumulus
clouds, and a tailwind giving me 235 KTS ground speed.

  After arrival,  I gulped down a beer while waiting for the shuttle to take
me into town from Henderson Airport (highly recommended). As I left the
lounge, I was approached by no less than 8 of Henderson's finest.  At first
they would not say what it was all about, but they proceeded to search me,
my luggage, and airplane while they detained me for over an hour.  Turns out
that US Customs/Border patrol felt that my flight profile was suspicious for
drug running across the border.  Fair enough. I guess I did just pop up on
radar out of nowhere several miles out to sea, then head to VEGAS.  It
probably also didn't help that there was no one else flying.  Those guys had
no one to watch but me.  (if you are a hammer, everything kinda looks like a
nail).

  Anyway, upon return to Oceanside today, I was surprised to hear that
Harold (the airport manager) already knew all about it.  In fact if it were
not for him vouching for my departure from OKB, I may very well have spent
the night in the slammer or, even worse, on the wet cold dark tarmac
removing and replacing all my inspection covers.  It turns out that one of
the triggers associated with my flight profile was the 235 KT GS.   After
all, who does that except turbo props and drug runners?  :-)

  BTW, it was unbelievable to see all the palm trees at Mandalay Bay covered
in snow like they were fir trees.  Snow was building up on the Luxor then
sliding down in big sheets - that is called a desert avalanche.  McClellan
closed most of yesterday, not because the weather was too bad but because
they don't stock the right kind of de-ice fluid and because not enough of
the mechanics are checked out on the de-ice machines.  I was delayed leaving
HND today because they don't have a snowplow to plow the runway.  Instead
they just drove a bunch of vehicles up and down the runway until they had
splashed most of the snow off.

  Still, it would have been much worse if I had driven.  I-15 southbound was
closed for more than 24 hours and I was still able to leave town before my
buddy who drove and had to fight nasty roads all the way home while I was
treated to snowy vistas and clear skies.

  Gotta love these dream machines!

  --
  David Leonard

  Turbo Rotary RV-6 N4VY
  http://N4VY.RotaryRoster.net
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